14 Feb Do you suffer with anterior knee pain?
Anterior knee pain is pain that occurs at the front and centre of the knee. It is very common to experience anterior knee pain and is typical in children, girls more often than boys. It is most often related to the patella or knee cap and the patellofemoral joint. The patellofemoral joint is where the under surface of the patella slides on the femur (thigh bone) beneath it.
Common Causes
Anterior knee pain can be a result of a number of conditions and may effect the joint, bone, tendon and muscles surrounding the patella. 
Some conditions include:
- Patellofemoral pain syndrome
- Patella or quadriceps tendinopathy
- Chondromalacia patellae
- Iliotibial band syndrome
- Osgood-Schlatter’s disease
- Sinding Larsen Johansson syndrome
- Knee bursitis
- Articular cartilage injury
- Patella instability
- Referred pain from the hip or back
Why does it happen?
Some factors that lead to anterior knee pain include:
- Muscle weakness and imbalance
- Muscle/soft tissue tightness
- Poor foot control and strength
- Poor knee and hip control
- Poor core-stability
- Wrong footwear
- Sudden changes in training or exercise loads
Management
The treatment of anterior knee pain relies on an accurate diagnosis and understanding of the contributing factors as each presentation is different.
At SportsFit, our Glen Iris and East Malvern physio’s take a detailed history to understand the background behind your injury and why it may have occurred. They will assess how you move and what may be contributing to your pain.
Depending on your injury your treatment may include:
- Soft tissue massage
- Dry needling
- Taping to offload or support different areas
- Exercises to improve your strength (knee, hip, foot and core-stability)
- Exercises to improve the function of your whole leg
- Stretches
- Foam rolling
- Education and empowering you to fully understand your injury, it’s causes and the best management
BOOK NOW to have your knee assessed today. Prompt management will get you back LifeFit, WorkFit or SportsFit.